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Halloween 2024 costumes embrace memes, DIY, and obscurity
All Hallow’s Eve is upon us, and who would have thought that this year’s biggest seasonal debate would be when exactly we should be celebrating Hallo-weekend?
While half of the country deals with the Halloween aftermath of last weekend and the other prepares for big plans at the end of this week, the holiday has already stoked a wide variety of clever and outlandish costumes, nods to one’s inner child, and viral TikTok trends. And though most of the chronically online costumes abided by today’s more careful social norms surrounding online posting, many continue to push the bounds what’s considered appropriate on the holiday.
Obscurity and memes dominate once again
Challengers trios and costumed salutes to brat summer conveyed one truth: Generic costumes remain out, with the most niche costumes commandeering attention away from even the most impressive celebrity ensembles. Modern Halloween is about being in on the joke, whether you like it or not.
The internet’s favorite reaction memes, like “sad ant” and “she’s so crazzzzzzy“, made iconic party appearances, and the internet’s favorite X posts, like “he wants that cookie so effing bad,” got transformed into iconic couple outfits.
The tongue-in-cheek “I hate gay Halloween” trend revived itself for another year, with an even greater flood of off-the-wall costumes than last season’s obscurities. Maybe you spotted one of the choir of French children playing tribute to music legend Serge Gainsbourg in a now viral video from 1988? Or a melancholy Oompa Loompa from the disastrous “Willy’s Chocolate Experience”? Perhaps you spotted a pair of horses, but not just any horses, the horses from Beyoncé’s duology album covers? Wait, maybe it was actually the carousel horse from Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield’s We Live in Time…
Everyone is in their DIY era
Whether it was an obscure meme only a select few would know or the year’s biggest Hollywood character, users online were going all out on their homemade outfits, esoteric props included.
Some of the most random entries: Figures on a crosswalk sign made with just blood, sweat, and a hefty amount of black poster board. The carefully crafted car passenger seat mentioned in the Chappell Roan song “Casual.” Multiple Dune sandworms made from sleeping bags, playtubes, and pipe cleaners capitalized on the franchise’s current popularity.
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Parents went all out for their children, as well, and documented the process, including lifesize Crocs sandas and alien abductions. Even dogs got in on the crafty action. Adults reinvigorated the spirit of their childhoods, too, from Spongebob and Webkinz characters to the Scooby Doo live action crew, iSpy Books, and Princess Diana Beanie Babies.
It suggests Spirit Halloween’s prepackaged outfits just aren’t serving the public’s needs anymore — In fact, the company may be pivoting to the Christmas market now.
The cultural appropriation conversation is more complicated
Still, Halloween season isn’t complete without some questionable costume choices. But where cultural appropriation was once a hotly debated faux-pas, its place in the cultural conversation has quelled. The nation’s political environment and celebrity obsession continue to complicate the matter.
On X, users quickly spread an image of a young couple dressed as Sean “Diddy” Combs and a bottle of Johnson’s baby oil — a reference to allegations of sexual abuse by the famous rapper, who is currently in prison, awaiting trial. The individual labelled “PDiddy” had painted his face dark brown, an egregious case of blackface. The baby oil theme was popular among others, as well.
When another user shared his costume from the previous Halloween season — a pun on the phrase “human trafficking” depicting him as a traffic light wearing a crown — a subset of users called out the post for making light of sex-based crimes.
Additionally, egregious instances of racism among Halloween posts enraged many online, reiterating to many that the holiday’s historic issues aren’t a thing of the past.
The environment is ripe for a renewed conversation about race and abuse as depicted in online media. Earlier this year, TikTok users went viral for resharing their old childhood costumes that were now deemed problematic, including Pocahantas and stereotypical “Indian” outfits. Years prior, users were ironically posting their “cancellable” costumes, most of which were clickbait posts to show off their favorite or funniest outfits.
While Indigenous “headdresses” are no longer the costume accessory of choice (despite the indie sleaze revival), some of the public’s popular Halloween choices still hark back to complicated, problematic eras in humanity’s history.
Earlier this month, TikTok user Chanci Culp, known as @allstyleschanceculp, stirred conversation about the ethics behind celebrity costumes, too.
“Oh God, I’m nervous,” she says to the camera in a now viral video, before explaining her hesitations about dressing up as a member of ’90s R&B group TLC. Culp asks her followers and Black women at large if dressing up as a famous Black celebrity would still be considered offensive. The video’s comment section was resoundingly, but not entirely, positive. In a follow up post generating more than 800,000 views, Culp explained her concerns further, pointing to her upbringing among overtly racist family members. “It’s not your burden to teach me what’s offensive and not offensive,” she tells the camera. “That’s my responsibility. I have to unlearn…” Halloween revelers, take note.
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NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for April 19, 2026
The NYT Connections puzzle today is not too difficult if you have a sweet tooth.
Connections is the one of the most popular New York Times word games that’s captured the public’s attention. The game is all about finding the “common threads between words.” And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we’ve served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.
If you just want to be told today’s puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for today’s Connections solution. But if you’d rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.
What is Connections?
The NYT‘s latest daily word game has become a social media hit. The Times credits associate puzzle editor Wyna Liu with helping to create the new word game and bringing it to the publications’ Games section. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.
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Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there’s only one correct answer.
If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.
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Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.
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Here’s a hint for today’s Connections categories
Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:
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Yellow: Lippy
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Green: Gowns
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Blue: Played in Vegas
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Purple: Sweet treats
Here are today’s Connections categories
Need a little extra help? Today’s connections fall into the following categories:
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Yellow: Cheeky
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Green: Dress measurements
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Blue: Cards in Texas Hold ‘Em
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Purple: Last words of candy brands in the singular
Looking for Wordle today? Here’s the answer to today’s Wordle.
Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today’s puzzle before we reveal the solutions.
Drumroll, please!
The solution to today’s Connections #1043 is…
What is the answer to Connections today
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Cheeky: ARCH, FRESH, SASSY, WISE
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Dress measurements: BUST, HIPS, LENGTH, WAIST
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Cards in Texas Hold ‘Em: FLOP, HOLE, RIVER, TURN
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Last words of candy brands in the singular: CAP, DUD, KID, MINT
Don’t feel down if you didn’t manage to guess it this time. There will be new Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we’ll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.
Are you also playing NYT Strands? Get all the Strands hints you need for today’s puzzle.
If you’re looking for more puzzles, Mashable’s got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.
Not the day you’re after? Here’s the solution to yesterday’s Connections.
Entertainment
NYT Strands hints, answers for April 19, 2026
Today’s NYT Strands hints are easy if you’re constantly changing.
Strands, the New York Times‘ elevated word-search game, requires the player to perform a twist on the classic word search. Words can be made from linked letters — up, down, left, right, or diagonal, but words can also change direction, resulting in quirky shapes and patterns. Every single letter in the grid will be part of an answer. There’s always a theme linking every solution, along with the “spangram,” a special, word or phrase that sums up that day’s theme, and spans the entire grid horizontally or vertically.
By providing an opaque hint and not providing the word list, Strands creates a brain-teasing game that takes a little longer to play than its other games, like Wordle and Connections.
If you’re feeling stuck or just don’t have 10 or more minutes to figure out today’s puzzle, we’ve got all the NYT Strands hints for today’s puzzle you need to progress at your preferred pace.
NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: Small change
The words are related to changes.
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Today’s NYT Strands theme plainly explained
These words describe fine-tuning.
NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?
Today’s NYT Strands spangram is vertical.
NYT Strands spangram answer today
Today’s spangram is There I Fixed It.
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NYT Strands word list for April 19
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There I Fixed It
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Adjust
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Modify
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Alter
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Improve
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Tweak
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Refine
Looking for other daily online games? Mashable’s Games page has more hints, and if you’re looking for more puzzles, Mashable’s got games now!
Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.
Not the day you’re after? Here’s the solution to yesterday’s Strands.
Entertainment
Wordle today: Answer, hints for April 19, 2026
Today’s Wordle answer should be easy to solve if you can never sit down.
If you just want to be told today’s word, you can jump to the bottom of this article for today’s Wordle solution revealed. But if you’d rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.
Where did Wordle come from?
Originally created by engineer Josh Wardle as a gift for his partner, Wordle rapidly spread to become an international phenomenon, with thousands of people around the globe playing every day. Alternate Wordle versions created by fans also sprang up, including battle royale Squabble, music identification game Heardle, and variations like Dordle and Quordle that make you guess multiple words at once.
Wordle eventually became so popular that it was purchased by the New York Times, and TikTok creators even livestream themselves playing.
What’s the best Wordle starting word?
The best Wordle starting word is the one that speaks to you. But if you prefer to be strategic in your approach, we have a few ideas to help you pick a word that might help you find the solution faster. One tip is to select a word that includes at least two different vowels, plus some common consonants like S, T, R, or N.
What happened to the Wordle archive?
The entire archive of past Wordle puzzles was originally available for anyone to enjoy whenever they felt like it, but it was later taken down, with the website’s creator stating it was done at the request of the New York Times. However, the New York Times then rolled out its own Wordle Archive, available only to NYT Games subscribers.
Is Wordle getting harder?
It might feel like Wordle is getting harder, but it actually isn’t any more difficult than when it first began. You can turn on Wordle‘s Hard Mode if you’re after more of a challenge, though.
Here’s a subtle hint for today’s Wordle answer:
To rise.
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Does today’s Wordle answer have a double letter?
There are no recurring letters.
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Today’s Wordle is a 5-letter word that starts with…
Today’s Wordle starts with the letter T.
The Wordle answer today is…
Get your last guesses in now, because it’s your final chance to solve today’s Wordle before we reveal the solution.
Drumroll please!
The solution to today’s Wordle is…
STAND
Don’t feel down if you didn’t manage to guess it this time. There will be a new Wordle for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we’ll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints. Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today’s Strands.
Reporting by Chance Townsend, Caitlin Welsh, Sam Haysom, Amanda Yeo, Shannon Connellan, Cecily Mauran, Mike Pearl, and Adam Rosenberg contributed to this article.
If you’re looking for more puzzles, Mashable’s got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.
Not the day you’re after? Here’s the solution to yesterday’s Wordle.
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